Dear Orphenica and other sceptical members of this list.
I am afraid I am unable to give you detailed legal
interpretations of the EU BSE regulations, but I will try to answer a
few of your questions, and set out why I personally signed the
petition. reasons which seem to have brought a number of luthenists on
the French lute list (including myself) to sign this petition.
%
Firstly this problem has not just been localised to Italy, even if the
last company to stop making gut, Aquila, is located there.
Prior to this in 2010, Sofracob (a French company), had to close their
doors, for exactly the same set of reasons.
%
On the French list, a research string maker who was a friend of the
people working at Sofracob, confirms that Sofracob, the only French
string maker, went out of business after "37 years of service" due to
EU BSE regulations, as they could no longer source sufficient raw gut.
This French researcher tells us that the rules are still in place,
here, but ignored when the lobby group is strong enough, as in the case
of the chacuterie lobby group. This in itself, it seems to me, is a
sufficient reason to sign the petition. Only "lobbying" may be
effective.
%
We can't save Sofracob, and we may not be able to change Aquila's
decision, but there are two other large companies in the EU, Toro, in
Italy, and Keurschner in your own country (Germany) who we may be able
to save; and we must bear in mind that most raw gut used even by US
string makers, comes from the EU, so it is also possibly endangered
(There are a few very small companies that have their own supply of
sheep gut, and one sourcing from Moroco, but none of these are large
enough to meet demands).
%
Searching the net for information, I see that Mimmo Peruffo in 2006 did
give a warning about the immenent danger from BSE regulation in an
interview with the Guardian (dated Sunday 21 May 2006).
[1]http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2006/may/21/bse?INTCMP=SRCH
(Please note that the Argintinian company mentioned in this text, went
bancrupt).
%
Peruffo hoped to ask "for an exemption to the ban for a 'historically
significant' craft: 'Without strings, no one could play Bach or
Handel."
%
Unfortunately, nothing followed from this, and Sofracob closed in
February 2010 exactly for this same reason.
%
As members of this list seem sceptical, I think I should copy the
announcement from Sofracob:
FR) SOFRACOB (SociA(c)tA(c) FranAS:aise de Corde en Boyaux) to close
its doors after 37 years of service
Contributed by Admin on Jan 09, 2010
%
"Dear Customer,
%
Ever since the onset of Mad Cow Disease (BSE), we have done our best to
maintain our business activity. Unfortunately, however, despite all our
efforts, we must inform you that SOFRACOB will terminate its business
at the end of February 2010. We recommend that you purchase some
inventory before our closing, but we must receive your order no later
than late January. We have always done our utmost to provide you with
the best in customer satisfaction, and we are sorry to be obliged to
end our collaboration. Pending your eventual orders for the end of
January 2010, you can be certain that this situation has left us
regretful that we will no longer be able to serve you.
%
Sincerely Yours,
Best regards.
Ph. LENOBLE and VIRGINIE"
%
This text alone would make me sign the petition.
%
It may be that people on the US List feel somehow that this (coming
after the crysis of the Euro) is just another EU problem (certainly
many on the French list have signed the petition); but I think this
would be rather looking at the situation with blinkers. Mimmo's warning
in 2006 was ignored, and Sofracob closed not long after. Do we want to
wait for the next "victim"?
%
Regards
Anthony
%
________________________________
De : Orphenica <[2][email protected]>
AEUR : "[3][email protected]" <[4][email protected]>
EnvoyA(c) le : Dimanche 20 Novembre 2011 23h17
Objet : [LUTE] Re: gut string, etc.
Hi collective lute wisdom,
can somebody sum up the situation on gut strings for me. As I am a
heavy gut player, I'd like to
understand what is going on in this field.
As far as I understood it, the production and import of gut strings
(esp. beef gut) used to be forbidden in the EU,
due to cases of BSE some years ago. This jurisdiction has been
withdrawn and production is allowed again, with the exception of Italy
which missed to cancel the abolition from the national Italian body of
law.
Aquila stopped the production of gut
strings due to this national Italian jurisdiction AND/OR because it
could not get raw material of sufficient quality, because of import
restrictions.
As I read from the post here on the lists, production in other
countries do not seem to be problematic
If this is the case, petitions addressed to the EU are quite useless,
petitions should be adressed to the Italian government. I am inclined
to sign any petition that keeps the production of gut strings going,
but I am not
quite sure, WHAT is the real nature of the problem.
It would be nice if somebody kindly could sum up the situation for me.
Thanks
we
Am 19.11.11 16:53, schrieb William Samson:
> Hi Garry,
> Talking of "lip smacking good", there was stuff in Nelson's navy
called
> 'portable soup' that was made by boiling a vat of soup until it
> attained the consistency of
thick hide glue, then letting it cool. It
> was broken into slabs that could be re-constituted by the
addition of
> hot water. I wouldn't be surprised if it was indistinguishable
from
> hide glue. On the other hand, the sailors enjoyed it - but then
I
> suppose it was nice compared to weevilly biscuits and salt beef
that
> had circled the globe several times. Also they wouldn't have
lived
> long enough for the prions to take effect.
> Bill
> From: Garry Warber<[5][email protected]>
> To: [6][email protected]
> Sent: Saturday, 19 November 2011,
13:09
> Subject: [LUTE] Re: gut string, etc.
> William,
> Hey, welcome to the mindset in the states... We are not known as
> "yanks" for nothing. :-) You are right, "loose lips sink ships",
more
> or less. Of course, there is that prions not being harmed by
cooking
> thing. But as far as I know, only one guy here thinks hide glue
is
> "lip-smacking good!" :-)+LOL...
> Garry
> -----Original Message----- From: William Samson
> Sent: Saturday, November 19, 2011 3:18 AM
> To: [1][7][email protected]
> Subject: [LUTE] Re: gut string, etc.
> ----- Forwarded Message -----
>
From: William Samson<[2][8][email protected]>
> To: Garry Warber<[3][9][email protected]>
> Sent: Saturday, 19 November 2011, 8:12
> Subject: Re: [LUTE] gut string, etc.
> >>Is hide glue now also banned in the EU?
> SHHH!!!! I hope none of these Eurocrats is reading this
list!!!
> This'll give them the opportunity to appoint dozens more
overpaid
> officials who get bonuses for imposing bans and senseless rules
and
> regulations. Remember the 'straight banana' fiasco? Now they
are
> denying they ever
tried to ban curved ones . . .
> Still, the great thing about hide glue is that you can make
your own
> by
> boiling up roadkill in a secret location where the thought
police
> can't
> find you.
> Bill
> PS Orwell's '1984' was a long time coming, but it's with us
now -
> metrication, never ending wars, three political blocs (take
your
> pick),
> 'Newspeak', CCTV cameras everywhere, political correctness . .
.
> PPS Just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean . . .
AARRRGGGHHH!!!!
> --
> To get on or off this list see list information at
> [4][10]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
>
> --
>
> References
>
> 1. mailto:[11][email protected]
> 2. mailto:[12][email protected]
> 3. mailto:[13][email protected]
> 4. [14]http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
>
>
--
References
1. http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2006/may/21/bse?INTCMP=SRCH
2. mailto:[email protected]
3. mailto:[email protected]
4. mailto:[email protected]
5. mailto:[email protected]
6. mailto:[email protected]
7. mailto:[email protected]
8. mailto:[email protected]
9. mailto:[email protected]
10. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/%7Ewbc/lute-admin/index.html
11. mailto:[email protected]
12. mailto:[email protected]
13. mailto:[email protected]
14. http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/%7Ewbc/lute-admin/index.html
